


I'm No Hero

by mylifeiskara



Series: Chopped Fics [3]
Category: The 100 (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Superheroes/Superpowers, Canon-Typical Violence, F/M, Jaha as Magneto, Kane as Professor X, Murphy as Wolverine, Time Travel, X-Men AU - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-19
Updated: 2020-07-19
Packaged: 2021-03-04 17:41:37
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 8,035
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25370305
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mylifeiskara/pseuds/mylifeiskara
Summary: It’s 2052 and Reapers are wreaking havoc on mutants and humans alike. Murphy is recruited by Kane and Jaha to go back in time to prevent Octavia Blake from starting an international crisis that made the future much worse. But going back to the past comes with some side effects, mainly having to do with some relationships that Murphy left on bad terms.Written for Chopped 3.0 Round 2THIS FIC WON:3rd Place Tie Theme3rd Place Based on a TV Show/Movie Trope3rd Place Forehead Touch Trope
Relationships: Emori/John Murphy (The 100)
Series: Chopped Fics [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1843351
Comments: 4
Kudos: 11
Collections: Chopped 3.0 Round 2





	I'm No Hero

**Author's Note:**

> Hi! This is my submission for Chopped 3.0 Round 2. The theme is sci-fi and the tropes are:  
> 1) Based on a TV Show or Movie  
> 2) Reunion  
> 3) Kiss to keep cover/keep a secret  
> 4) Forehead touches
> 
> The movie I picked is X-Men: Days of Future Past, which I recommend to people who haven't seen it. I hadn't seen it in a while, but I just had a flash of Murphy as Wolverine when thinking about what movie I could use and this is what came out of it. Murphy, Jaha, and Kane are the only ones that are specifically based off X-Men characters, though I did draw inspiration for Emori's mutation from Rogue, but I would say that's where the similarities end. Also apparently this past week was the 20th anniversary of the first X-Men movie, so that's pretty fun!
> 
> I don't write a lot of sci-fi or action stories, so this was a fun challenge, and I'm pretty happy with how this turned out. That being said, I hope you enjoy!

_Upstate New York, Professor Kane’s School for Gifted Youngsters: 2052_

John Murphy wasn’t expecting to get a holo-signal from Marcus Kane after decades of not hearing from him, but there’s not much that takes him by surprise anymore. He’s lived through enough to have seen it all, and because of this he likes to keep a low profile. One might call him a recluse, but it’s more a self-preservation tactic than anything else.

Seeing as the year is 2052, one would think the world would have progressed past prejudice based on differences, but that’s not the case where mutants are concerned. Mutants are the byproduct of a rare genetic mutation, exacerbated depending on one’s exposure to radiation. This mutation manifests itself in certain latent abilities, that if not controlled, can be dangerous. To a normal human, a mutant is seen as a threat, something that the government is hellbent on putting a stop to. It’s dangerous for groups of mutants to congregate together, because of the Reapers.

Reapers were invented by the US government to seek out and terminate mutants. Their selling point when originally created was that they could detect even a mutant that looked human. Now with years of technological enhancements, Reapers are more dangerous than ever, even targeting humans who aid in the shelter of mutants.

Years ago, Murphy used to travel around with a group of mutants. He would even go so far as to call them his family. But when Reapers came onto the scene, Murphy quickly realized it was better to go it alone. He’s had an easier time than others. His mutation, which consists of (but is not limited to) an accelerated healing factor and retractable claws, makes it so that he can go about life undetected, as long as he stays out of range of Reapers. Not all mutants have that luxury.

Even with all of these precautions, Murphy’s had a few run-ins with Reapers in the past that he’s only narrowly escaped. He knows Kane wouldn’t signal him if it weren’t dire, so that’s how he finds himself taking a somewhat unwanted trip down memory lane as he stares up at the vast mansion that used to be Professor Kane’s School for Gifted Youngsters.

He’s ushered inside and led to the basement, a part of the house he’s only been to a few times. There’s clearly more to it than he was made privy to on his past trips, because he’s led onto an elevator that takes him even further underground. The elevator door opens, and he’s met with Marcus Kane, though he’s obviously much older since the last time they saw each other.

“This better be good, Kane,” Murphy says in lieu of a greeting. “I’m gonna have to find a new hiding spot because of you.”

“Nice to see you too, John,” Kane says with that same, somewhat patronizing smile. Even in old age, some things never change.

“I know we don’t have time for pleasantries. Your message sounded urgent.”

“Indeed it was, John,” a voice from the corner calls. Murphy steps further into the room to find Thelonius Jaha. Now he really has no idea what’s going on.

A long time ago, Kane and Jaha were good friends. Both mutants, they began working together to track down others like them to form a coalition of sorts. In fact, Murphy was one of the young mutants they took in. Kane’s vision for the coalition was to create a school where young mutants could learn to use their powers and control them, and eventually be able to assimilate back into regular society. Jaha didn’t agree with this line of thinking. He didn’t understand why mutants should have to hide who they really were to fit in with what society deemed acceptable. They eventually disagreed with each other’s methods so greatly that they split apart, creating a divide between the students as well. Murphy has no idea what’s going on, but it must be serious if these two are working together again.

“You’re looking pretty spry for someone who’s about fifty,” Jaha says.

Murphy shrugs. “I can’t help the slow aging thing. Haven’t decided yet if it’s a blessing or a curse. Now can someone please tell me why I was summoned here?”

“Follow me,” Kane says before turning on his heels and standing in front of a door for a retinal scan.

“ _Welcome, Professor_ ,” the door says as it opens. He motions for Murphy and Jaha to follow him.

The door they step through leads into a lab. A couple people are standing over the control panel of a sleek machine. He recognizes one of them, even though he’s thirty years older.

“Monty, I think we’ve found you the perfect subject,” Kane says.

Monty turns around and smiles. Murphy was happy to see his old friend, until he realized that he must be the subject Kane was referring to.

“As nice as it is to see you, Monty, I think I need to know what’s going on,” Murphy says.

“Reapers keep finding us, and we’re working on a way to put a stop to it,” Monty explains.

“Well yeah, you’re a bunch of mutants all under one roof. You might as well have a giant arrow signaling them to come get you. And how are you still alive if they keep finding you?”

Monty pats the machine. “It’s thanks to this. Gabriel and I have created this machine so that when a person steps inside, they’re transported into their past consciousness.”

Murphy frowns. “You could’ve just said you made a time machine.”

Gabriel chuckles. “Where’s the fun in that?”

Monty shrugs. “Well we’ve been using it to go back in time and warn ourselves of the next attack so we’re prepared to stop it. So far we’ve only been able to go back about a week for a few hours.”

“But we’ve thought of something that might provide a more long-term solution,” Kane interjects. “I’m sure you’re aware that the Reapers are able to adapt and can take on the powers of any mutant they’ve come into contact with.”

“Yeah, that’s what makes them virtually unstoppable,” Murphy says with a nod.

“The reason for that can be traced back to an incident in 2022. Do you remember Octavia Blake?”

Murphy laughs. “Who could forget Octavia Blake?”

“Well she caught wind of news that Cage Wallace, the creator of the Reapers was going to be presenting the design at a tech and weaponry symposium. She knew how prejudiced he was against mutants and thought the best way to put a stop to this was to kill him.”

“That unfortunately set off a series of events to make the Reapers even more powerful,” Jaha takes over. “As you know, Octavia’s power was the ability to shapeshift. When they took her in after killing Wallace, they did tests on her, took DNA samples, and figured out how to use her genetics to enhance the Reapers.”

“We would like to send someone back in time to stop Octavia from killing Wallace, as we believe that’s the key to changing everything for the better,” Kane finishes.

“So what does this have to do with me?”

“We can’t send just anyone back,” Gabriel chimes in. “The other reason we didn’t call it a time machine, is because that’s a bit of a misnomer. The only thing that gets sent back are your brain waves. They become part of your past self. We haven’t sent anyone back more than a week because a journey longer than that could cause irreparable brain damage, maybe even death.”

Murphy furrows his brow. “You’re really selling this.”

“But that’s where you come in, John,” Jaha says. “Because of your healing factor, traveling back in time thirty years would not have the same effect on you. It might be strenuous if you get into a bad situation, but you wouldn’t be dead on impact.”

Murphy assesses the situation. They clearly need him. He’s not used to that. He doesn’t want to be a hero, which is why he sided with Jaha in the whole split. But it’s not right that his kind are facing extinction because some people feel threatened. If there’s a chance that he could aid in stopping the Reapers altogether, it seems worth a try.

“What the hell,” he mutters. “What do I have to do?”

Kane pats him on the shoulder, a smile spreading across his face. “Excellent. First things first, once you get to 2022, you have to find me here and explain the situation. Then you’ll have to reunite me with Jaha, which as I’m sure you know, will be a bit of a challenge.”

“I’ll say. It’s a wonder you two can be in the same room now.”

“In times such as these it’s easier to see that we both wanted the same thing all along. We just tried different routes to get there.”

Murphy nods. He looks at Monty and Gabriel, who seem eager to have a new subject for their weird time machine. He’s never felt more like a lab rat.

“Oh, and one last thing,” Kane adds. “I was in a bit of a dark place back then. I might take a bit of convincing to help at all. But luckily, I had a few students that stayed with me, so worst case scenario, they should be able to help steer me in the right direction, particularly Octavia’s brother.”

Murphy’s stomach drops. “Students?”

“Yes, just a few. I’m sure you’ll remember them.”

“That’s what I’m afraid of,” Murphy mumbles to himself. He steps forward and Monty and Gabriel help position him in the machine.

“So when you’re transported back, you’ll wake up wherever you were at that exact moment,” Monty says. “And if this works properly, once you’ve fixed the problem, you’ll be the only one who remembers this specific timeline. It’s a little trippy. But also kind of cool.”

“Okay,” Murphy says. He’s too nervous to say much else. And not just because he could potentially die trying to right the future.

“Good luck,” Kane says as Monty closes the door on the machine.

Gabriel begins typing phrases into the control panel, and Murphy braces himself, unsure what sort of sensation he’s going to feel as he’s transported to the past. He’s not sure why he expects it to hurt, but he’s certainly not expecting the actual outcome, as his eyelids begin to droop and he falls into a deep sleep.

_New York City: 2022_

Murphy is assaulted by a large ray of sunlight. He opens his eyes slowly, trying to take in his surroundings. It almost looks like he’s in a college dorm room. But he didn’t go to college. He’s startled by a sigh and turns his head to find a sleeping form next to him. He doesn’t remember this girl. Maybe this is the part of 2022 he was drunk for the majority of. He sits up too fast, and a pain shoots through his head, confirming that theory. He searches the room for his clothes and throws them on, grabs a pair of sunglasses off the nightstand and heads off into the New York City morning. Thankfully he’s only a few hours away from Kane’s mansion. He just needs to get there.

The streets are surprisingly quiet, though it’s a nice spring day, but this makes it easier for Murphy to hijack a method of transportation to get upstate. He spots a fairly inconspicuous car, somewhat older than the others parked on the street. Murphy remembers vividly the day that they started placing enhanced security systems in cars so that only the people given select permission could drive them. But of course, he quickly found a work-around to that issue.

He looks around to make sure nobody’s paying him attention then balls his hand into a fist as his claws erupt from under his skin. He puts one into the lock of the car and opens it, letting himself into the driver’s seat. Though the exterior is old, the inside is refurbished, complete with the most up-to-date security system. Murphy rolls his eyes as it begins to beep at him, signaling that he does not have access to drive this vehicle. He pulls the system out of the console and throws it onto the backseat. The car roars to life.

“ _Where to_?” it asks.

“Professor Kane’s School for Gifted Youngsters,” Murphy says and the GPS plots the course. He begins the familiar drive, allowing himself to get lost in thought on the way.

Murphy lets his mind wander to what’s in store for him when he arrives at Kane’s mansion. Future Kane had told him that a few students stuck around to help him out. Whoever they were, they probably wouldn’t be happy to see Murphy. He’d made a big stink when he left to join Jaha, and it didn’t go over well. He feels badly for how things ended with everyone, but he feels the worst about how things ended with one person in particular.

Back in 2017, when Murphy was a mere fifteen years old, he decided he’d found the love of his life. Emori, another mutant that Kane took in. She was brilliant, resourceful, not to mention pretty. He was enamored almost immediately, and grateful that she even thought to give him the time of day. It was a love that burned bright and the flame was extinguished all too quickly.

When mutant and human tensions began to worsen and Jaha decided to break ties with Kane, Jaha implored other students who were proud of who they were to join him, to not hide away as he claimed they were doing at Kane’s school. Hearing those words and seeing someone who was unashamed of what he was made young Murphy feel empowered for the first time. He urged Emori to join him and leave the school, but she didn’t agree with Jaha’s reasoning.

Emori’s mutation was not as innocuous as Murphy’s. She was able to absorb energy through her touch, and with that she could take away people’s powers, memories, even their breath. She always wore gloves, afraid that she would lose control and hurt someone she cared about. Emori wanted to stay with Kane, since he wanted to help her learn to control her power. Jaha couldn’t offer the same. The night before Murphy left to join Jaha they had a big fight and somewhere along the way he called her a coward, which he regretted the moment it came out of his mouth. Needless to say, the conversation ended there and they never spoke again. He wishes he knew what happened to her, but back in 2052, Emori is dead.

As he nears Kane’s mansion, Murphy wonders to himself what it would be like to see Emori today. It’s been five years. Maybe she’s not still mad at him. But then again he has no idea where Emori was in 2022. She might not be one of the students Kane was referring to.

Murphy parks the car outside the gate, not wanting to draw too much attention. The property looks a lot more rundown than he remembers. Almost deserted, in fact. If Kane hadn’t said this is where his past self would be, Murphy would assume that nobody lives here. He walks up the pathway as he’s flooded with memories of what it was like back when he had friends. When for once in his life things were allowed to be normal. And then he had to go and ruin it. He works to get those thoughts from his brain. He has to focus. He’s on a mission, and the fate of mutant kind somehow rests on his shoulders.

When he finally reaches the front door, Murphy takes a deep breath before ringing the bell. His heart pounds in his chest and he can’t seem to calm it. It’s only made worse when the door finally swings open.

“We don’t want whatever it is you’re selling,” Emori says as she opens the door. She stops short when she lifts her head and sees who it is.

Murphy is speechless. Of course this is just his luck, though. He goes to the past and the first person he’s met with is someone who hates him. But even if she hates him, she looks as beautiful as he remembered her. A little older now, since the last time he saw her she was sixteen, but still the same determined face, and hair pulled back with the same bandana.

“John?” she says, almost in a whisper. Murphy notices the seemingly conflicting emotions that run over her face, as if she’s deciding whether or not she’s happy to see him.

He waves and tries to put on a smile. “Hi, Emori. It’s been a while.”

“What are you doing here?” she asks, her voice cold.

Murphy grimaces, trying not to let the icy welcome bother him. He deserves it. But there are more dire matters at hand.

“I need to see Professor Kane.”

“Says who?”

“Him, actually. He sent me.”

Emori laughs. “I highly doubt that.”

“Look it’s kind of hard to explain, but I’m telling the truth.” He pushes past her, realizing she’s not going to let him in willingly.

“Is he in his study? Did that weird secret basement exist in 2022?” he asks, not sure where to look first.

“What the hell are you talking about?”

“Murphy?” comes a voice from down the hall. Murphy turns to see Raven Reyes coming toward him. She also looks none too happy to see him.

“Reyes! Good to see you.”

“Really?” she snorts. “Can’t say the same about you.”

“You shouldn’t be here, Murphy,” comes another voice descending the stairs. It’s Bellamy Blake, with Clarke Griffin following closely behind.

Murphy groans. “Listen, coming here to hang out with a bunch of people who hate me wasn’t really high on my to-do list. But the fate of the universe depends on it, so can I please talk to Kane?”

“What is it you want, John?” Kane calls. Everyone in the foyer looks up as he makes his way down the stairs. Murphy’s never seen Kane looks so disheveled. It looks like he hasn’t gotten dressed yet. What the hell is going on with him?

“Man, you really weren’t kidding about being in a dark place, huh?” Murphy mutters.

“If you came to insult me, you can leave.”

“No, that’s not why I’m here. Okay this might sound crazy, but you’re the one who sent me. From the future.”

His companions exchange looks with each other and burst out laughing.

“Yeah, I didn’t think you’d believe me. But read my mind, you’ll know I’m telling the truth.”

“I can’t read your mind,” Kane says, still reigning in his laughter.

Murphy frowns. “You’re the most powerful telepath in the world, of course you can read my fucking mind.”

“Not right now, I can’t.”

“Well fine. Clarke’s a telepath. She can do it.”

“What?” Clarke asks in disbelief.

“Read my mind! I’ll make it easy for you.”

Clarke relents and steps forward, placing a hand to Murphy’s forehead. She closes her eyes for a moment as she probes his mind, then steps back, her eyes wide.

“He’s not kidding,” she says to the rest of the group. “It’s not a good situation.”

“So what did Kane from the future send you to do?” Bellamy asks.

“Octavia’s in trouble,” Murphy answers.

Bellamy snorts. “Yeah, what else is new?”

“Well this time it’s trouble that affects us all.”

He explains the ripple effect that killing Cage Wallace had and how they have to stop Octavia in order to stop the Reapers from ever being manufactured.

“Shit,” Bellamy finally says.

“Yeah. The future is looking pretty grim. So I’ve found you, the next step is to get Jaha, wherever he is.”

Kane laughs at this. “Jaha won’t help. And even if he would, we’d never be able to get to him.”

“What if I said you both sent me back here together?”

Kane frowns, but doesn’t say anything else.

“That doesn’t change the fact that he’s in a maximum security holding cell for attempted government insurrection,” Raven chimes in. “I’m surprised you weren’t implicated in that whole thing, Murphy.”

“Not that I have to prove anything to you, but I split with Jaha after about a year. He started to get a bit too holier-than-thou for my tastes. But my instructions were clear. It may be a maximum security cell, but come on. We’re mutants.”

The others look between each other again, and Murphy hates not being in on their silent communication. Eventually Kane nods, and they spring into action.

“I should be able to locate Jaha’s holding cell with ALIE,” Raven says. She starts to make her way to the basement lab, Kane following closely behind her. So it _did_ exist. Murphy just never got to see it.

“What should the rest of us do?” Murphy asks.

“Just wait,” she calls over her shoulder.

Once they’re gone, Murphy isn’t sure what to do with himself. Though Bellamy, Clarke, and Emori aren’t asking him to leave anymore, it still doesn’t feel like he’s all that welcome. He wishes they had parted on better terms. It may only have been five years for them, but for him it’s been decades, and he doesn’t want to waste the time he has left with them being upset.

“Are you hungry?” Emori eventually asks.

Murphy nods. “I could eat.”

“Come on, then.” She turns and heads to the kitchen. Murphy follows closely behind her, leaving Bellamy and Clarke still standing in the foyer.

After a couple hours, Raven and Kane come back upstairs. They’ve located the building where they’re holding Jaha, an underground, metal-free cell below the National Museum of Dance in Saratoga Springs. The government recently started using hidden locations for mutants they felt to be potential threats. Jaha was one of them. They worked late into the night coming up with a plan to extract Jaha without being seen.

The next day, Raven flies them all to Saratoga in Kane’s invisible jet. Bellamy will be doing the actual extraction, making use of his speed mutation. Clarke will use telepathy to be in Bellamy’s head and direct him through the process as well. Murphy, Kane, and Emori are in charge of the distraction in the museum.

Once they’re in the museum, Murphy and Emori go to the front desk to get information. They ask a myriad of questions, allowing for the others to slip in undetected. Eventually the receptionist just hands them all the pamphlets they can carry and sends them on their way.

It’s not crowded in the museum, but Murphy notices the security guards at multiple entry points.

“Lot of security for a dance museum,” Murphy remarks.

“Well when you’re secretly hiding one of the world’s biggest potential threats it makes sense to have a bunch of armed guards handy,” Emori says.

She’s still short with him, and Murphy wishes it didn’t have to be like this. He wants more than anything for things to be normal with them again. But he can’t focus on that now. They’re on a mission. He can worry about his love life later.

Emori scans the room for the fire alarm. Thanks to Raven’s survey of the building the night before using ALIE, they were able to case the joint to help come up with their plan. She makes her way towards a painting that’s closer to the alarm and motions for Murphy to follow her.

They stare at the painting for a moment. It’s nothing special, just a woman lacing up a pointe shoe. Emori glances around one last time before pulling the lever. The alarm goes off, and people begin to rush to the exits. Emori grabs Murphy’s arm and pulls him down a hallway away from the alarm so it doesn’t look like they’re the ones responsible. A guard hurries in their direction and Emori grabs Murphy’s face and kisses him.

Murphy is shocked by the contact, but reacts quickly and kisses her back. Kissing Emori is like second nature, and though he hasn’t kissed her in years, it’s like he never forgot how it felt.

“Hey!” someone shouts from behind them.

They pull apart to find an exasperated guard staring at them.

“Break it up! That’s the fire alarm, please exit the building.”

“Sorry sir,” Murphy says, wiping his mouth as he takes Emori’s gloved hand and walks out of the building.

“Sorry about that,” Emori says once they’re away from everyone else. “Didn’t want to blow our cover.”

“Don’t worry about it.” He tries not to let the fact that it doesn’t mean anything bother him, but he can’t help the pit that forms in his stomach after her admission.

Now that their part is done, they meet where Raven says she’s landed the jet, a bit further off from the museum.

They stand in silence waiting for the rest of their team to finish their part of the extraction. Murphy’s never felt so uncomfortable in Emori’s presence in his life. He doesn’t like it. She stands with her arms folded across her chest, staring at the ground.

“Are we just not gonna talk to each other for the next couple days?” Murphy asks.

“I don’t know that I have very much to say to you,” Emori says, still not looking at him.

“Listen, Emori. I fucked up. I know that. I never should have called you a coward for wanting to stay with Kane. In the end, it was probably the smarter decision.”

Emori scoffs. “Was it? If the future is as bad as you say it is.”

“At the end of the day I don’t think it matters who we side with. No matter what we do, someone’s always going to hate us or want us dead. That part’s out of our control. And I think Kane and Jaha really want the same thing. They just don’t agree on how to get there.”

She doesn’t say anything else. Murphy sighs and stuffs his hands into his pockets, not sure what else to do.

“Did you really go it alone?” she asks after a moment.

He turns to her. “Yeah. I could tell Jaha was going off the rails, and I didn’t want to be associated with it. It ended up being easier.”

“Why didn’t you just come back to the school?”

“I didn’t think it’d be a good idea. I mean, would you have wanted me back?”

“You broke my heart, John,” Emori says as a sad smile crosses her face.

Murphy’s heart breaks all over again hearing her say that out loud. What’s worse is when he left Jaha he did consider going back to Kane’s. But he knew things could never be the same.

“I didn’t know if I could face you again. I’m sorry.”

Emori shakes her head.

“No, really.” He takes her hand in his. “You deserve an apology. You deserve better than a guy who breaks your heart.”

“Just because you broke my heart, doesn’t mean I didn’t want to hear from you,” she says, finally looking him in the eye.

Murphy frowns and opens his mouth to say something, but is interrupted by the whir of Kane’s jet as Raven opens the bay doors. They turn to see Bellamy, Clarke, and Kane with Jaha in tow running towards them.

“Guess it’s time to go,” Emori says, letting go of Murphy’s hand. He immediately misses the contact, but follows after her and boards the plane.

They quickly strap in for take off. Though the jet is fairly silent, it still makes noise and they need to get into the air as soon as possible if they want to get out without being noticed.

“Now that we’re not running, could someone please explain to me what’s going on?” Jaha asks once they’re in the air.

“Apparently the two of us from the future sent John back to stop an international crisis,” Kane answers drily.

Murphy rolls his eyes. “I’m telling the truth! If you’d just read my mind, you’d know, too, instead of letting Clarke do all the work for you.”

“I already told you I can’t read your mind right now!” he snaps back.

Jaha frowns. “You can’t read his mind? Because of his mutation?”

“No, I can’t read anyone’s mind.”

“How is that possible?” Murphy asks.

Kane turns his head and points to a small chip that rests behind his ear.

“I was hearing too many voices in my head. People in agony, and I had no way of helping them. It drove me crazy. Raven designed this chip for me that stops the voices. But it comes with side effects.”

“So basically when you’re wearing it, you don’t have your powers?”

“Exactly.”

Jaha chuckles and shakes his head.

“Is something funny?” Kane asks, turning to him.

“It’s just rich, coming from someone who calls himself a teacher. Why should anyone follow you when you can’t even accept yourself for who you truly are?”

“You know nothing about what it’s like to be me, so why don’t you just keep your mouth shut?”

“I may not know, but I do know what I’m not. At least I’m not lying to myself about what makes me different. In fact, I embrace my differences. You’re so afraid of not being like everybody else that you would rid yourself of the most interesting thing about you? You can’t possibly be a mentor to anyone until you accept yourself, Marcus.”

“Thelonius, I don’t remember asking for your opinion!”

As their conversation gets more heated, the plane begins to rumble. When Jaha gets angry, he tends to lose control, so it’s unfortunate that all this is happening while they’re in a metal object in the sky.

“What’s going on back there?” Raven shouts from the cockpit.

The plane tips to one side and Murphy’s stomach lurches as he grabs onto his armrests for dear life. He looks to Bellamy and Clarke, terror in their eyes as they reach for each other’s hands. Emori, who is the closest to Jaha and Kane, watches them frantically. As they continue to argue, the plane tips further.

“Jaha, seriously!” Raven screams. “Cut it out!”

Emori jumps up from her seat, removing a glove as she does. She touches Jaha’s face with her ungloved hand, and Murphy looks on in shock. What the hell is she doing? Just as suddenly as the plane began to tip, it rights itself. Everyone turns to her and stares in disbelief.

“Don’t worry, it’s only temporary,” she says as she puts her glove back on. “Kane, taught me that. So maybe he’s not as useless as you think he is.” She turns and joins Raven in the cockpit, closing the door behind her.

Murphy turns to Jaha and Kane.

“Listen. We have a job to do, and it’s a lot more important than your disagreement. I’ve seen the future and it’s fucked up. But there’s a chance that we can make it less fucked up. The fate of all mutants rests in the balance, and you two both clearly care a lot about that. You just have to get along long enough for us to stop Octavia, and then I don’t care if you go back to hating each other for the rest of your lives.”

They look at him, both vaguely impressed. He hears a chuckle from behind him and turns to see Bellamy smiling.

“You got something to say?” Murphy asks.

Bellamy shakes his head. “No. It’s just I’m not used to seeing you give impassioned speeches. Or caring about people other than yourself.”

“Yeah, well we can’t leave all the passionate speech-giving to you.”

The rest of the ride is quiet. Jaha and Kane settle on a game of chess, which surprisingly doesn’t break out into any arguments. Bellamy and Clarke talk in hushed tones, while Murphy stares out the window.

Although his conversation with Emori earlier was short, he can’t help but replay it in his head. She wanted him to come back. He thought about coming back countless times, but he was so afraid of what she would say to him. The guilt ate away at him for years, and he wished he’d gotten the chance to fix things. This seems like the do-over he’s been craving for decades, but now that he’s got it, he’s not sure what to say.

Once they’re back at the mansion, they all assemble around ALIE as Raven gathers information about the Technology, Weapons, and Warfare Symposium that Cage Wallace will be unveiling the Reapers at. They also search for Octavia’s last known whereabouts, which come up fairly empty, since she can transform into anyone.

“Our best bet is to find her once we get to DC,” Raven declares.

“It’ll be crowded. I’m not sure I have the capacity to search that many people’s minds at once,” Clarke says.

“Well you’ll just have to try.”

“It’s okay, Clarke,” Kane says.

“No, it’s not! We’ll never stop her if I can’t even locate her.”

Kane doesn’t respond, but pulls the chip away from behind his ear. He crushes it in his hand.

“We’ll find her, because you’ll have me, too.”

The whole room seems to let out a collective sigh of relief at this news. Sure, Clarke is powerful, but not nearly as powerful as Marcus Kane.

Jaha pats him on the back. “It’s good to have you back, old friend.”

“Great,” Raven says, moving forward with the plan. “So we’ll have two telepaths searching for Octavia, which means Murphy, Emori, and Bellamy can move freely about the symposium. Jaha, you’ll have to lay low since you’re on the lam, but once we locate Octavia, we’ll need you.”

They run through the plan a few more times before breaking up for the evening. Murphy doesn’t sleep a wink. He hopes all this will be worth it. What if he wasn’t the right person for this job? He’s never had this much responsibility before, and the fate of the world is hanging in the balance. He knows it had to be him, but he worries it won’t be enough. He’ll just have to wait and see what tomorrow brings.

They all wake up early to prepare to fly to Washington DC. Raven is staying behind to man ALIE, on the off-chance Octavia does pop up on the radar before they find her. Emori flies the plane, and not wanting to talk with any of the others, Murphy sits in the cockpit with her. She doesn’t do anything to stop him, so he takes that as a good sign.

“Ready for this?” Emori says after a while.

Murphy snorts. “Not at all. I wasn’t cut out to be a hero.”

“Well I’d say you’re doing a pretty good job.”

He smiles as he looks at her. Her face is scrunched in concentration as she flies the plane.

“You’re doing a good job, too,” Murphy says. “You’re really brave.”

“Thanks.”

Murphy takes a breath before saying what he wanted to say back in Saratoga.

“You know, even if we do stop Octavia, there’s still a lot of uncertainty about what’s gonna happen. This whole thing is kind of a big hunch, so I can’t say I’m not nervous.”

“We all are.”

“Yeah, well. If we don’t get out of this and end up making things worse, I just want you to know that even with everything I’ve had to face in my lifetime, my biggest regret has always been not coming back to you.”

“I could have come looking for you.”

“We don’t have to dwell on it. But we’ve found each other now, so I just wanted you to know. In case anything happens.”

“Nothing is happening to you, John,” Emori says, turning to look at him for a moment.

He can’t disagree with the look of determination set in her face. They stare at each other until she looks ahead again. He doesn’t argue anymore, just turns to look out the window. The silence is loaded, but Murphy doesn’t mind. She still cares about him.

They land in DC by mid-morning, and the convention center where the symposium is taking place is just beginning to get crowded. They put in their in-ear devices so they can communicate with Raven.

“Raven, any chance you’ve seen a glimpse of Octavia on ALIE?” Clarke asks.

“Negative,” Raven responds. “You and Kane will have to find her.”

Murphy, Emori, Bellamy, Clarke, and Kane make their way into the convention center, leaving Jaha behind on a bench outside. He’ll enter the building once they’ve located Octavia. Murphy sticks close to Emori, Clarke sticks with Kane, and Bellamy goes off on his own.

“Any sign of her yet?” Raven asks once they’re inside.

“I can’t find her,” Clarke reports.

“Nothing from me,” Kane says.

“Well, I’ve found the room on the second floor where they’re keeping presenters until the showcase. Wallace is making his way there. Conference Room B.”

“We’ll move there now,” Clarke says.

Murphy turns to Emori. “We’d better get to the second floor.”

They quickly make their way to the second floor of the building. Or, as quickly as they can in a room that’s crowded with people without drawing suspicion.

“Did anyone check on Bellamy before we left?” Emori wonders aloud.

Murphy frowns, realizing Bellamy hadn’t checked in when Raven informed them that Wallace would be on the second floor. In retrospect, leaving him alone while they’re trying to track down his little sister probably wasn’t the best idea.

“Bellamy do you read me? Bellamy, come in!” Raven calls in their ears.

He doesn’t answer.

“Well this isn’t good,” Murphy says.

Emori sighs. “We have to find that room.”

“Raven, any intel on Wallace?” Murphy asks.

“He’s in there alone right now,” Raven says. “Just a security guard.”

Murphy’s eyes widen. “Shit!”

“You think it’s Octavia?” Emori asks.

“How else would she get a gun in this place?”

“Jaha, you’re up,” Raven says.

“Already inside,” he calls back.

“That wasn’t part of the plan!”

“Well if I had listened to the plan, you’d have more of a situation on your hands, wouldn’t you?”

“Have any of our telepaths seen Bellamy?” Raven asks, ignoring Jaha’s response.

“I can’t find him, he must be trying to block us out!” Clarke answers.

“Goddamnit, Bellamy!”

“I’m here, Raven,” he finally says.

“What the hell are you doing?”

“What needs to be done. My sister, my responsibility.” His in-ear goes out after that. They’ve lost him.

“Bellamy?” Raven shouts. “Bellamy!”

“We might need a plan B, Raven!” Clarke says frantically.

“Already on it, but someone needs to locate Bellamy, now!”

“We’re on it,” Murphy says.

He and Emori break out into a run as they near Conference Room B. They see Jaha is already at the door, but he holds a finger up to his mouth as they near him, signaling them to be quiet. Murphy peers into the room to see Octavia pointing a gun at a frightened Cage Wallace. Bellamy stands behind her.

“You don’t want to do this, O,” Bellamy says, his voice shaking.

“Stay out of this, Bellamy!” Octavia snaps. “It’s for the good of our people.”

“If you pull that trigger, our people are going to be much worse off than you can imagine.”

“This man has experimented on people like us. He says it’s in the name of science, but we all know that’s not true. He deserves to die!”

“And if you shoot him, you’re no better than he is.”

“Just let me do this!”

She goes to pull the trigger, but at the same moment, Jaha intervenes and the gun flies from her hand and into his.

“Octavia, I’m afraid we can’t let you do this,” he says calmly as he steps into the room.

Octavia turns and stares at Jaha in disbelief. “Shouldn’t you be locked up right about now?”

“I’ll admit, I admire your motives, but Bellamy is right. You can’t do this.”

Murphy feels a rush of air and within a blink, Bellamy has the gun in his hands and pointed at Octavia.

Octavia laughs. “You gonna shoot me, big brother?”

“If that’s what it takes to stop you.”

Murphy’s stomach drops in horror as the next moments play out in slow motion. Bellamy pulls the trigger as Octavia runs further into the room, smashing through the glass window and down into the rest of the convention center. Bellamy drops the gun once he’s fired his shot and speeds out of the room. So much for not causing a commotion.

“Help!” Wallace shouts as he tries to escape in the madness. Emori acts quickly, removing a glove and touching him so that he’s knocked out.

Murphy, Emori, and Jaha flee the scene.

“I’m sure you just saw the glass window shatter, but Octavia’s on the move!” Murphy says to everyone else.

“She must have transformed again, but she was hit! People saw her before she shifted.” Clarke answers.

“We lost Bellamy, too!” Emori continues.

“It’s madness down here. We need to abort, everyone head toward the exit and meet back at the jet!” Kane orders.

Once they’re back on the first floor, Murphy spots a trail of blood. He sees a figure limping towards an exit, and breaks into a run to catch up.

“John, wait!” Emori says, but he doesn’t listen.

“Octavia!” he shouts.

The figure turns his head and smiles, but continues to move forward. It’s her. Murphy speeds up, trying to gain on her. He feels his claws retracting from his knuckles in anger, and people recoil in fear. He’s almost to her and he pounces.

Murphy hears the gunshot but doesn’t realize it’s aimed at him until a searing pain erupts in his side. He cries out and falls to the floor.

“John!” Emori screams. She’s next to him in a heartbeat, carefully putting his head into her lap.

“I don’t really know if you’re supposed to move me,” he jokes.

“Stop it,” she says through tears, not finding any of this remotely funny. “I can’t do this, not when I just got you back.”

“Emori, I’m gonna be fine. Healing factor, remember? Believe me, I’ve had worse.”

Emori nods, taking a deep, but shaky breath.

Murphy takes her hand in his, eyes welling with tears as he talks through the pain. “Hey. I’m okay. I promise.”

“I love you, John,” she whispers, reaching down to rest her forehead on his.

“I love you, too,” he says, closing his eyes. “I never stopped.”

She lets out a laugh despite herself. He smiles as she leans in and presses a slow kiss to his lips. 

“Raven, I see Wallace getting taken out in handcuffs,” Clarke says over their in-ears. “What’s going on?”

“That would be plan B,” Raven says. “Thanks to ALIE, I did some digging and found evidence to tie him to some very illegal activity. Called in an anonymous tip.”

“What would we do without you, Reyes?” Murphy mumbles. Everything around him begins to fade.

“John!” Emori says, her voice frantic as she pats his cheek. “John, stay with me!”

Emori’s voice begins to feel further and further away as Murphy drifts out of consciousness.

_Upstate New York, Professor Kane’s School for Gifted Youngsters: 2052_

Murphy wakes up flat on his stomach, in a bed he doesn’t remember ever having. He rubs his eyes as he fully comes to. He has no idea where he is. He looks around the room and his eyes go wide when he notices a picture frame on the nightstand. It’s a photo of him with Emori. They’re smiling at each other, but they’re not teenagers. He doesn’t remember it being taken.

He pulls back the covers and lifts himself out of bed. He throws on a shirt and some shoes and heads for the door. He frowns again when he hears faint voices on the other side. Where the fuck is he?

Murphy opens the door and almost topples into a teenager running through the hallway. He glances around and sees kids of varying ages going on about their days. He must be back at Kane’s. But since when is the school up and running again?

He closes the door behind him and continues down the hall. He peers into open rooms as he goes. Monty and Raven are teaching a class together. Gabriel is helping kids find books in the library. He starts down the stairs and halfway down is met with Bellamy and Clarke on their way up.

“Someone slept in today,” Bellamy jokes as they pass each other.

Murphy frowns, but keeps going. Once he reaches the bottom of the stairs, he stops dead in his tracks, as he’s met with the last person he expected to see.

“There you are, sleepyhead!” Emori says.

She walks forward and plants a quick kiss on his lips. The nearby students make audible noises of disgust. She rolls her eyes fondly at them.

“Get to class, guys!” She turns back to him and he gets a moment to look at her. She’s definitely aged, but the youthful light that Murphy loves so much is still present in her eyes. Is he back in the future? What the hell is going on?

“John?” Emori says, concern crossing her face. “You in there?”

“Hmm? Yeah, I’m here,” he says.

“Now don’t forget, we promised we’d take Ana out to dinner tonight since she passed her pilot’s test.”

Murphy nods. “Okay. And remind me who Ana is?”

She gives him an unimpressed smirk. “Our daughter. Were you drinking last night?”

“Eh, probably.” He gives her an exaggerated shrug and notices a wedding band on his left ring finger. He and Emori are married? It’s not that he’s mad, it’s just that he would like to remember it.

“Well it seems like you maybe had a bit too much. We should keep an eye on that. I have to go to a meeting, but Kane is looking for you.”

She presses one last kiss to his cheek, then heads up the stairs. Murphy stares after her in disbelief, but eventually he shakes it off and knocks on Kane’s office door.

“John!” Kane says from his desk. He’s old again, and his smile this time around is a bit more inviting. “Just the man I was looking for. I could hear your confused thoughts from all the way down here.”

“Well I woke up and everything was different,” Murphy says. “Good different, but I guess I’m just confused.”

He gestures for Murphy to sit down. “What can I tell you?”

“Everything that happened after the symposium in 2022.”

Kane lets out a chuckle. “That’s a lot of information.”

Murphy shrugs. “Seems like we’ve got nothing but time.”

“You’d be right about that.”

Murphy sits back as Kane explains the aftermath of the attack at the symposium. Kane advocated for mutants, citing that Raven was able to find enough evidence to arrest Cage Wallace for his corrupt business practices with the ALIE program they designed. This event turned the tide in their favor, showing that not all of them wanted to wreak havoc. Kane was able to re-open the school, and some of his most loyal pupils have stayed on to teach and bring up the next generation of mutants.

“It sounds like I’ve found a family here,” Murphy remarks after a while.

“You have, John. And you’ve become a hero in your own right. You saved us all.”

Murphy smiles, staring down at his hands. He’s never known how to take a compliment, so at least that’s one thing that hasn’t changed. He never wanted to be a hero, and he kind of hates that the circumstances were thrust upon him. But the outcomes are more than he could have imagined, so he really can’t complain. He has friends, a family, all the things he never thought he’d get to have. It didn’t happen in the way he expected, but he wouldn’t change a thing.

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks so much for reading! Let me know what you think, and don't forget to check out the other stories in this collection.
> 
> And you can always find me on [Tumblr](https://queenemori.tumblr.com/)!


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